NEW YORK: Burson-Marsteller has appointed Pat Ford, formerly MD in the firm's public affairs practice, to take over for Judi Mackey as chairman of its US corporate practice.

Mackey, who has held the chairman post since 2001, will assume the title of MD in the corporate practice.

A replacement for Ford in his previous MD position has yet to be determined.

Ford, a 14-year veteran of the agency, will report directly to Chet Burchett, Burson's North American CEO, and oversee corporate activity across five domestic offices.

"I will look at where we can increase cross-fertilization among other practices," said Ford. "My job will be to look at how we organize our offering in a broad sense, across areas of business, but I still anticipate spending 60%-70% of my time working directly with clients."

Ford said he expects his experience in public affairs, which has focused heavily on issues and crisis management, to help manage corporate clients operating in an increased regulatory environment.